The aim of this paper was to shed more light on the attitudes and dispositions to mathematics education of secondary school students with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream schools. The data were collected as part of a larger project in England which looked at the relationship between students' learning outcomes (including dispositions)…

Many learners may be successful in mathematics but nevertheless see themselves as existing only on the margins of the practice, or as lacking stability in it--in this sense, they have what can be called a fragile identity. Although this kind of relationship with mathematics is not limited to girls and women, they do appear to express such fragile…

Background and Rationale: Student withdrawal and non-completion in institutions have been an issue of considerable concern. The lack of mathematical ability has been identified as a factor resulting to non-completion in higher institutions. Several students in higher education approach mathematics with a lot of anxiety. This has created the need…

This paper explores gender differential performance in "gifted and talented" 9- and 13-year-olds in a mathematics assessment in England. Boys' and girls' attitudes to mathematics and their views about which gender is better at mathematics are also considered. The study employs the use of a matched sample of boys and girls so that school,…

A fundamental question in developmental science is how brains with and without language compute numbers. Measuring young children's verbal reactions in Spain and Finland, we show that, although there is a general arithmetic ability for small numbers that is shared by monkeys and preverbal infants, the development of such initial knowledge in…